Contract, registration, and proof of who this puppy is
A Bergamasco Sheepdog puppy should come home with a signed breeder contract, a receipt, and registration or litter paperwork that identifies the litter and explains how ownership and registration transfer to you. The accompanying ancestry record should name the sire and dam and let you trace the puppy's family, which matters in a breed with a small population where many dogs are related.
Confirm the puppy's recorded sex, colour, and identifying details are consistent from the contract to the health record, and collect microchip paperwork or the chip number and registration details once chipped. Because Bergamasco litters are few, also keep the breeder's full contact details and the names of any breed club contacts they give you; your support network for this dog may be national rather than local.
What the contract should cover for this breed
Look for a health guarantee with clear conditions, a return-to-breeder clause if you cannot keep the dog, and a statement on whether the puppy is placed as a companion or with breeding expectations. Bergamascos mature slowly, so a thoughtful contract may also discuss the timing of neutering or spaying in relation to growth; if it does, that conversation belongs in writing so you can review it with your own vet.
The contract should record the food the puppy leaves on, the handover arrangements, and any deposit and balance payments. Keep it with the receipt as your proof of the agreement, not filed separately from the dog's other papers.
Veterinary record from the litter examinations
Ask for the health booklet or record signed by the veterinary practice that saw the litter. It should list each examination, vaccinations given with dates, worming treatments and dates, any preventive treatments, and the vet's findings on heart, eyes, bite, movement, and hernias where checked. If a puppy was smaller, treated for anything, or kept back longer than littermates, that should be noted in writing rather than explained from memory.
Bring this record to your own vet at the first visit so nothing is repeated unnecessarily and no vaccine interval is guessed. A rare breed may also meet a vet who has never seen one, so a tidy litter record helps that first appointment run on facts.
Parent health screening to request by name
Ask for copies of both parents' hip evaluation results and recent eye examination certificates, plus any other screening the breeder has completed for their lines. Match the names and identification on each certificate against the sire and dam named in the ancestry record, and ask what health issues the breeder has seen in close relatives over time.
In a small gene pool, that family conversation is part of the record. Write down what the breeder tells you about longevity, coat or skin problems, and temperament in the wider family, date the note, and keep it with the certificates for your vet.
The coat and socialisation notes only this breeder can give
No generic puppy leaflet can replace Bergamasco coat guidance from the person who owns the parents. Ask for written instructions on how the coat changes in the first year, when the hair begins to form its characteristic flocks, what the breeder does and does not separate by hand, and which washing and drying routine they use. A new owner who grooms this coat like a doodle-style fleece can create problems quickly, so get the method in writing.
Also collect feeding amounts and schedule, the litter's socialisation experiences, and notes on this puppy's character among its siblings. File the contract, screening copies, vet record, and coat guidance together in KinsLe's Pet Passport so your Bergamasco's unusual record set stays complete and portable for every vet, groomer, and boarding handover.